


Strictly Professional

by literaryoblivion



Category: Supernatural
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Fashion & Models, Fluff, M/M, Model Dean, Modeling, Photographer Castiel, Photography
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-08-26
Updated: 2014-08-26
Packaged: 2018-02-14 20:50:24
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,353
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2202639
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/literaryoblivion/pseuds/literaryoblivion
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>On principle, Castiel never works with new and “up and coming” talent. But just this once, he decides to make an exception with Dean Winchester, who he ends up bending all his rules for.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Strictly Professional

**Author's Note:**

  * For [lemonsorbae](https://archiveofourown.org/users/lemonsorbae/gifts).



> This is for Fea for her birthday. I started this FOREVER and a day ago based on [this photoset](http://jimmynovakisaved-archive.tumblr.com/post/47197496193) and the tags Fea had put on it: "can we please get model!Dean and photographer!Cas #like #i want a Nigel Barker inspired Castiel #who is this genius with a camera #and then this cocky new model who is booking shoots left and right #but he’s a prima donna to the extreme #until he books a shoot with Cas #and Cas takes none of his shit".

On principle, Castiel never works with new and “up and coming” talent. He prefers to work with seasoned professionals who understand what it means to model, and more importantly, know how to take direction. He has a few select favorites that he’s worked with before on many shoots, and he’s always happy to work with them again. They have a good report with one another, and all he has to do is flick his wrist or tilt his head, and they know exactly what Castiel wants. Together with them, they have made beautiful works of art that put Nigel Barker’s to shame.

Of course because Castiel is such a Leonardo Di Vinci with his camera, it means he is highly in demand by everyone. This also means that he can be choosy with who he has model for him and what shoots he decides to take on. So when he gets a call from his assistant about someone he’s never heard of requesting a shoot with him, he automatically dismisses them and says no. He’s not even sure why his assistant even bothered calling him with such a request, since he’s sure he’s told her many times his policies on unfamiliar models.

It isn’t till she calls again for the third time that day, while he’s out on a shoot no less, that he finally realizes why she’s insistent on asking him to take on this new model.

“Anna, I am working. Is this really that important?”

“Castiel, I’m sorry. I really am, but my phone has been ringing non-stop today all because of this guy. Can you at least say you’ll consider it so I can have him and his agent stop calling me? Please?” She sounds frazzled and desperate, and Castiel likes Anna, the best assistant he’s had in a long while, and feels a little sorry for her.

He sighs, “Alright. Have them send me some of his other work and I will consider it, but I make no promises. Make sure they understand that.”

Anna, filled with relief, replies, “Oh god, thank you. Yes, sir, I will make sure they know. I’ll have the photos on your desk when you come back into the office tomorrow.”

“Thank you, Anna,” he says, hanging up before she has a chance to respond. Others may find that rude, but Anna is used to it, and he knows that. Besides, he’s losing light, and he has no time for niceties and salutations.

***

When he comes into his office the next morning, there is a rather thick folder on his desk waiting for him, along with a pile of other notes and messages from Anna. He sets the other notes aside to look at the folder. On it is a name, “Dean Winchester” and a post-it note in Anna’s handwriting: “Here’s the highlights of all the shoots he’s done. Hand delivered, too. Let me know what you decide.”

He decides he must answer his emails and messages first before he can peruse the folder. Castiel has a routine when he comes into the office, and he doesn’t like to stray from it. But, after thumbing through the other notes Anna had left and only making a small dent in his email, his curiosity gets the better of him, and he pulls the folder closer to him and opens it.

Castiel is instantly taken aback at how beautiful this Dean Winchester is. He can tell now why the folder is so thick because even though Dean is new, he is quickly becoming a hot commodity in the modeling world. But even if that is the case, Castiel can’t help the small pleasure and pride he feels at the fact that Dean and his agent were still begging for him and not the other way around.

Slowly, Castiel flips his way through the photos, admiring the stunningly green eyes and full lips Dean has, the way his hair gets styled differently in the photos but still seems so natural on him. He can tell though that while Dean seems to have natural modeling talent and a lot of potential, there are still things Castiel recognizes as rookie type mistakes. Some of them he wonders why the photographers he worked with put up with it and thinks back to how frantic Anna had been when she had called pleading that Castiel consider working with Dean. Dean, or his agent, was demanding, and if he had so many shoots, it must be going to his head. Great, a prima donna.

While he goes from photo to photo, Castiel also checks to see whom all Dean’s worked with. At the front of the folder, the names don’t seem familiar, but towards the back of the folder, he recognizes Crowley’s Photography logo, and a flair of anger rises in him. Crowley does not nearly have the talent Castiel has behind the lens, but he always manages to steal away some of Castiel’s best clients and models. He’s always suspected that he bribes them in some way because anyone with eyes could see Castiel is the better photographer. Well not this time, Castiel decides, he’ll be the one to snatch Crowley’s model away from him.

And this is the reason Castiel goes with in his head for why, against all his self-inflicted principles, he tells Anna to find time in his schedule for a shoot with Dean and to let his agent know that he will work with him. He knows that’s not the real reason, that Dean is beautiful and Castiel knows that in his hands he could make Dean look like an Adonis, and that if anyone could mold Dean into the work of art that is just behind the surface, that Castiel wants it to be his hands, needs it to be his, his camera, his eye. He keeps these rather selfish reasons to himself though.

Anna is shocked at first at Castiel’s decision but nods her understanding, and says she will take care of everything. Castiel thanks her and returns to his office, trying to focus on his email again, but lingering over a few of his favorite photos of Dean every now and then.

***

When the day finally arrives for Dean’s shoot, Castiel is buzzing with excitement. He’s never felt like this before on a shoot in a long while. He loves his work yes, but somehow the thought of working with Dean, someone so new that Castiel can train how he wants, gives him a different sort of joy entirely. He even thinks he might rethink his self-imposed rule of working with new talent if this goes well. He could even say he is a little nervous as well, since before the shoot he decided to call around to a few of his trusted colleagues that had worked with Dean to see how he was. Many of them had said he was mostly a pleasure to work with, had a lot of potential, but all of them said that Dean was rather cocky for someone who was just starting out in the business.

Castiel had been worried about that before, something he had picked up on even when going through Dean’s file, but unlike his colleagues, Castiel was not a pushover. Dean would know soon enough what was expected of him, what Castiel expected of him, and if Dean knew what was good for him, he’d pay attention, listen, and obey. Castiel was the one who was giving Dean a chance to work with him, not the other way around, and Castiel was not about to let him forget it.

The location Castiel had chosen was unlike any of the ones Dean had been before. Many of his previous photographers had tried to play up Dean’s beauty by having him be in exotic locales, beaches, forests, etc., places with lots of light and other beautiful things that would surround Dean. Castiel, however, had chosen a more industrious location, a warehouse with exposed pipes and dirt and grime. Dean was gorgeous, yes, but if he really wanted to diversify his portfolio and play up his looks, he needed to be somewhere gritty, and dark, and be the only thing of beauty in the shot.

Even the outfits that Castiel had helped choose were simple: ripped jeans, dark jackets, even darker t-shirts that only had a few pops of color. And because Castiel is very much an auteur on his shoots, he even insisted that the make-up people use product sparingly, insisting they don’t make Dean too pretty and clean. Dean had groaned his frustration at that, but he instantly shut his mouth and sat up straighter when Castiel shot him a fierce look. Something about that look had made Dean shiver, and it had made him feel like all he wanted to do was please Castiel, the man he had wanted to work with ever since he started modeling.

Dean, now dressed and ready to be in front of the camera, walks up to Castiel, who is still messing with the settings on his camera and taking a few test shots to make sure the lighting was how he wanted, and taps him on the shoulder.

“All ready, Cas.”

Castiel balks a bit at the nickname, but only because it is something he is not used to and not because he dislikes it. Secretly he is gratified with how familiar Dean is with him; it would help with the rest of the day if they were friendly with each other. It still worries him a bit, all of the words from other photographers about Dean’s pride floating through his mind. He hopes that letting the nickname go was a good decision and wouldn’t bite him in the ass later and have Dean think he can get away with what he wants and ignore Castiel’s directions.

“Alright, Dean. Now, I know this isn’t like most of your previous shoots,” Castiel says. Dean snorts at this statement, but his face goes serious again when Castiel furrows his brow and stares menacingly at Dean. Castiel continues, “But, I think the diversity will be good for you.”

“Whatever you say, Cas,” Dean shrugs. “Where do you want me?”

Castiel breathes slowly before he starts, “Follow me.” Castiel then walks over to an area he had chosen and set up his camera to focus on, gesturing to the area where he’d like Dean to stand.

It’s in front of an exposed wall, the cement and dry wall chipped away in a large area to show the slats beneath. The first outfit Dean is in is a black T-shirt, black, red, and yellow lines of a German flag on his chest. The German flag has no significance to Castiel; he just liked how the colors stood out. Dean’s also wearing a gray zip-up jacket over it, and when he stands where Castiel points, he’s already striking a typical happy model pose for him.

“No,” Castiel says, trying to hold back his frustration. The whole point of this shoot is to go against the grain, to prove that Dean is more than the stereotypical model, so there’s no way Castiel can have him posing like all his other shoots, where he’s clean and pretty and boring.

“Forget all of your other previous shoots, all the poses you know and rely on. I don’t want any of them,” Castiel says firmly when Dean frowns and pouts at Castiel. “You’re in an abandoned warehouse, a barn. You’re dirty and sweaty, and you don’t want to be here--”

Dean smirks, “Maybe I do… with the right person.”

Castiel narrows his eyes. “I don’t want you smiling in any of these pictures.”

Dean seems to straighten at Castiel’s command, and he nods, the frown from moments before returning to his face.

The command seems to do the trick because he’s giving Castiel more of what he was looking for. Castiel takes a few shots and looks at the display to make sure everything is set, and then he takes more, moving around Dean while he frowns and sets his piercing gaze on Castiel.

Cas stops a moment to get a makeup artist to make Dean look dirtier, has them spray a mist of water on him so he looks sweaty, and then Castiel waves her away to continue taking pictures.

Dean seems to really want to please Castiel, taking his directions easily, doing his best to produce the dark and broody shots Castiel was going for. He only slips up a time or two, making a cocky comment about something, or saying something flirty and bordering on the edge of unprofessional and inappropriate. For some reason though, it doesn’t bother Cas like it would with someone else. He’s surprised at himself that he’s putting up with it.

They finish in the area, and Castiel moves him towards a wooden door that resembles a barn. He has Dean take off his jacket and has him lean against the wall beside it, asking him for much the same expressions as before. This time Dean obeys well, has picked up exactly what Castiel wants, and it makes Cas smile.

After Castiel has gotten all the shots he’d like in that spot, they take a short break to allow Dean to change and for him to set up in another area. Castiel decided to be nice and do a few shots with Dean in a setting he’s used to: on a couch, in nicer clothes. Although Castiel has the shots he envisioned for Dean, he knows that if Dean is trying to build up his modeling career, showing his versatility with various props and positions and settings with the same photographer is always a plus.

Dean is quick to get back to it, not taking long as Castiel thought he would to change and reapply makeup. This time around, Castiel barely even needs to direct him; Dean moves and looks exactly where Cas wants him to, and Castiel has the brief thought that Dean is a fast learner, that he might like to work with him again.

For all that Castiel heard about Dean’s attitude, Dean has yet to live up to the reputation, aside from their initial meeting. Dean is flirtation with Cas, but it doesn’t bother him, in fact, part of him even likes it. It’s no secret that many times artists fall in love with their subjects, and while he would not jump to love right away in his own situation, he does recognize how much he likes Dean, likes his willingness to follow his directions.

When the shoot is over, both Castiel and Dean are exhausted, Castiel even more so because he knows he still has to look over the photos, choose the best ones, and edit them. It’s the part he likes the least of being a photographer, having to choose between such similar photographs to find just the perfect one, where the light hits perfectly, where he doesn’t have to edit as much to make it look good.

He’s already starting to go through them while his photo assistant is taking down and putting away the lights, others putting away the rack of clothes, the makeup, the catering.

“Can I see them?” Dean asks, coming up behind Castiel.

“I don’t normally show anyone until I’ve picked the final ones.”

Dean pouts, “Not even a sneak peek? I mean… I was in them…”

Castiel bites his lip, because he shouldn’t, he should stick to his rules, but it seems he’s willing to break all of them for Dean. He tilts the display of his laptop towards Dean, who leans over to take a closer look.

“You’re amazing, Cas,” Dean says in a hushed whisper.

And even though he’s heard such praise before from colleagues, from other professionals and models, for some reason such a compliment coming from Dean makes his heart flutter and his cheeks flush.

“Thank you,” he says, trying to reign himself in. “You… you did quite well, too. You really are beautiful,” Cas adds, not sure why he does.

Dean ducks his head and rubs the back of his flushed neck. “Thanks, Cas. I’d… I’d love to work with you again… if you would, I mean.”

Castiel smiles. “I actually think I would.”

The grin Dean gives him is breathtaking, and Cas suddenly wants to see more of it, to see all the expressions he can pull from Dean that are for him and not for the camera.

“Well, I should probably get going,” Dean says thumbing over his shoulder towards the exit. Everyone else has cleared out of the area, and Cas can hear the last of the car doors and trunks slamming shut as the remaining people from the crew pack up and head home. All that’s left is the table he has his laptop on and his camera snuggling in his case.

“I’ll walk with you,” Castiel says, shutting his laptop and putting it in its case before slinging that and his camera case over his shoulder.

He and Dean walk out together. The only cars left in the lot are his and Dean’s, a classic black Chevy Impala that looks sleek and sexy, and Castiel can’t help but want to include it in a future photoshoot, maybe even one with Dean, since it is his car after all.

Castiel loads his equipment into the back of his own car, a small modern sedan, and Dean watches, standing nearby when he does. Dean looks like he wants to ask him something, so he turns to face him, to encourage him to ask.

“Are you hungry?” Dean blurts out, and that wasn’t quite what Castiel had expected him to ask.

“I… could eat,” Castiel replies. He had eaten the food during the shoot but that was hours ago, and it was close to dinner time.

“Do you… uh want to get something to eat? With me?” Cas furrows his brow, and Dean quickly adds, “I mean, you don’t have to. We can keep this strictly professional if you want, I just thought I’d ask cause I thought maybe… we had a… connection?”

And it’s true, Castiel thought they did as well. Why else would he bend and break all his rules for Dean if he didn’t at least like him more than any other model he’s worked with? He’s never been attracted to his other models like he is to Dean, can recognize the beauty and pleasing aesthetic features of others while behind the camera, but Dean is the first that Cas has liked, wanted even.

“I’d like that… to go eat with you.”

“Yeah?” Dean gives him a half smile.

Castiel bites his bottom lip, “Yeah. You pick a place; I’ll follow you.”

“Awesome! I know this great diner not too far from here. You’ll love it.”

~

They spend all night eating and talking and flirting, and if the diner weren’t open 24 hours, they would have gotten kicked out at closing time. As it was, they end up leaving because they are both tired from the days events, and Castiel still has to drive quite a ways home. Dean hesitantly offers to let Cas crash on his couch because he lives closer, and although Cas would gladly accept it because the thought of driving the half hour home is dreadful, he doesn’t quite trust himself alone in Dean’s apartment.

Instead, Castiel says goodnight and gives Dean a chaste kiss on the lips. Dean gives him another in return and his personal cell phone number with express promise he’ll call him so they can do this again, without all the crew and makeup and equipment. He promises, waves goodbye as he gets in his own car and drives away.

When Castiel gets home, he sends Dean a text saying he arrived safely and telling him good night, and when Dean sends him a good night and a smiley face back, Cas knows they’ve most assuredly moved away from the strictly professional area (as if the kiss wasn’t clue enough) and can never return.

And Cas, surprisingly, is okay with that.

**Author's Note:**

> I'm pretty sure when I originally started this, it was going to have a sexy ending. But then I let it collect dust without finishing it for a while, and it's ended decidedly fluffy. I'm sorry. But I hope you like it anyway! :D Happy birthday, Fea!!! I LOVE YOU TO PIECES!!!
> 
> For everyone else, come say hi on [my tumblr](http://literaryoblivion.tumblr.com) or [my twitter](http://twitter.com/lit_oblivion).


End file.
